


Nico di Angelo: Unbroken

by Akumadiavola007



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, BAMF Nico di Angelo, F/M, Fake Greek gods, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, M/M, Multi, Past Rape/Non-con, Protective Nico, Protective Percy, Sad Nico, Trauma, Unrequited Love, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-05
Updated: 2018-01-05
Packaged: 2019-02-28 14:54:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,925
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13273827
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akumadiavola007/pseuds/Akumadiavola007
Summary: Nico begins and ends alone on the mast of the Argo II. He fights a couple of gods, gains his full memory of his childhood for better or worse, and puts himself through pain, shame, and humiliation to save Hazel from the same fate. The seven of the prophecy and Reyna are there at the end to pick up the pieces, but there are none to pick up. Nico is not broken, even if he thinks he is.





	Nico di Angelo: Unbroken

Maria di Angelo was overwhelmed and depressed. She was a single mother in conservative Italy. With her familiarity with the Greek gods she couldn't bear to follow the Church, and her community shunned her accordingly. Her own parents would have disowned her for such disgrace had they not passed away when she had been young. She was alone and struggling to support two small children. The economy was in shambles. The country was controlled by a cruel dictator, and the whole of Europe was tense and panicked. Her neighbors kept quiet, succumbing to fear. The few who hadn't were long gone, their absences speaking of unimaginable fates, the unspoken threat that hung over the haggard heads of the remaining citizens. It was a cruel world, and a harsh era.  
Maria di Angelo was not afraid of death. She'd fallen in love with it, after all. There were few things she wouldn't do to be caught in the rushing quiet embrace of certain death. It was only right. She was just screaming to die, to escape this insanity, to see his face just one more time and be put to rest. She wanted days without breaking down in utter helplessness as Bianca asked what was wrong, and why couldn't they have anymore food, and was there anything she or Nico could do to help her, all while looking up at her with those innocent eyes that were far too deep for such a young child. Maria would whisper she was sorry, no they didn't have anymore food, leaving out that she hadn't even eaten herself, and finally no, there was nothing the children could do to help. They were already suffering in silence, bless their souls. There was nothing they could do, nothing she could do, and the guilt made her wish desperately for a peaceful death for all of them. They could go to Elysium together, and her children would never have to suffer again.  
There is a certain danger in knowing for certain what the afterlife entails. There is no doubt, then, to dissuade you from chasing after the possibility of endless bliss. It was an obsession of hers, as she watched her friends and neighbors, those who hadn't shunned her or her children for not being good Christians, disappear one by one. She knew not so deep in her heart what their fates would be. The nice Jewish couple who had looked after her kids, nurtured young Nico with paternal affection, was gone and Maria couldn't bring herself to tell her kids the truth. She suspected Bianca might have known, but the young girl said nothing about it to her brother. Maria watched her community march off to almost certain death, and as she stayed behind in a hopeless struggle she wondered why she should not share their fate. What could have possibly spared her life, or her childrens' lives from the wrath of a man who claimed to hold all power? No thank you, she wanted to say. We do not need your so-called mercy. I do not fear you. We are more powerful than you will ever be. We are di Angelos; we do not fear death. We live for it.  
Maria di Angelo is human. Sometimes humans break.  
She is lonely and depressed and stressed beyond belief. She despairs when there is no one left in town who will pay her anything, food, money, or otherwise, for her work. There is no food to give her children and their eyes have become so hollow, their bodies so frail. She no longer feels the bite of hunger herself. She is beyond feeling, too numb to keep sane.  
One night she hears Nico whisper to Bianca that he's hungry. "I know," her daughter whispers back, "I am too." And Nico, poor little Nico, quietly asks if they're all going to die, and do they get to go to Heaven soon? Bianca smiles and shrugs. "I don't know," she says lightly. "Maybe."  
And Nico is worried then because he says, "But what if I don't get into Heaven? What if I'm not good enough? I don't want to be alone."  
She soothes him, "No, you won't be alone. You won't, I promise." She hugs him tight. "I'll never leave you. I'd sooner be in Hell with you than in Heaven without you."  
Nico sniffled. "I love you, Bianca."  
"Love you too, little brother."  
And Maria broke.  
She wore a Jewish star. Sewed it onto all of her clothing and her kids' clothes too, made sure to wear it proudly in public. She told everyone she could about her newfound faith, and lectured her children on the specifics of the religion until even Nico was reciting his lessons with ease. Nico had smiled at the star on his shirts, remembering how their nice Jewish neighbors used to carry the same mark. Bianca was more suspicious, though she only asked one question. "Will we be taken away like the rest of our neighbors?"  
"Yes," Maria told her. "We will. They are our friends."  
Bianca's eyes bore into her guilty shattered soul, saw through her forced smile, but the girl said nothing.  
"Whatever we face, whoever does us wrong or hurts us, know that I love you both very much," Maria pleaded. "Fear nothing, my children, for we are dignified. Pain makes us strong. Remember that. We will never truly leave one another, not soon, not ever. No matter what happens we will see each other again in the afterlife. Remember what I taught you. Be strong."  
They were taken away soon enough, forced onto an overpacked train to carry them far away from their empty home. Maria was separated from her children and as they screamed for her, their cries making her lungs empty themselves in agony, she faded. She had no energy to maintain any semblance of life, any personality. Her mind dissolved and she welcomed starvation and the pull of death, only hoping it would claim them all soon. Maria di Angelo became the shattered soul she surely was.  
Little did she know that death would not be wooed so easily a second time. She would survive to be subjected to unspeakable horrors, insane cruelties, and backbreaking labor. The worst part of it all was that she had to live to witness her children go through much of the same and know that it was her fault. She saw them break, saw them lose their innocence, their freedom, their humanity. The sight of little Nico was heart-wrenching; his eyes were wide and glassy, looking but never seeing. He'd stopped smiling altogether. He had been separated from Bianca and her due to gender, and Maria was powerless to help him or to reassure Bianca. Her daughter was frantic with worry, distraught to be alone. Maria was no help. She couldn't bear to feel anything anymore. Nico was defiant when he could be, acting out and taking beatings like a champion. The guards enjoyed targeting him. Maria ventured towards the fence one day in a trance, called forward by the shrill screams of indiscernible pain and profanities. She gazed into the male concentration camp to see her small son, beaten and bloody, being violated by a Nazi guard in front of the rest of the camp. When the German was done another took his place. Still Nico cursed them with wild defiance until his cries petered out and his consciousness abandoned him. He was left dirty and mangled on the ground, shivering as the sun set into night. Maria turned away. She waited and waited for death to come, but he didn’t. And so they endured. They endured until they couldn’t. Bianca grew sick. It was a deep, hacking cough that brought out phlegm and blood. And little Nico was beaten down, beaten until he could hardly walk and then mocked and violated and mutilated until he really couldn’t. And Maria wasted away. She ate nothing, gave what she had to Bianca, and watched her children suffer day after day with the knowledge that she had failed. She had caused this. Why wouldn’t he come to them? He truly did not care for her anymore. She wondered if he had ever cared. She watched through the fence as her son, small and frail, was used until the guards deemed him useless. They had decided he could no longer work to earn his life. Now they marred him with bruises, cuts, blood, and semen, and the boy just stared. He no longer flinched. He did not shiver in the winter snow, though he was unclothed. His eyes remained glassy, staring up at the sky. He no longer called for her, his mother, or for his beloved sister. He sought no help, expected no help, did not believe anymore that he deserved anything better than this hell. She watched them drag his limp body towards the furnace. His eyes were open, but he did not look at her. She watched them drag him out of her sight, leaving her only the thick black smoke billowing into air to focus on. That was the last time Maria di Angelo saw her son. They took Bianca soon after. She was too sick to work, despite receiving Maria’s portions of food. She was also awake when they took her. Maria told her to stay brave. Bianca looked at her, but, like Nico, seemed to stare straight through her. “Do not worry, Mother,” she said with a wracking cough, “I will be with Nico and Father.” And once more, Maria lost sight of her child. She did not see the cool black cloak of shadows enveloping Bianca in safety once inside the furnace, as it had Nico. Maria could only watch the smoke rise. He had come for them at last, though she could not know that. She could only waste away, cold and forgotten, wracked with guilt, and wishing for a death that would not come. She would endure through months of suffering yet, believing her children to be dead, until her beloved finally came for her too.

Nico looked out on the sunset over the never ending ocean from the mast of the Argo II, as unsure of the future as ever. Tartarus had truly done a number on his sanity, but he was working to get past it. He watched the other demigods on guard below, talking and teasing and generally looking more worry-free than they probably should, considering the upcoming war. Nico sighed. He couldn't be part of that, the familial teasing that happened on a daily basis here. It was interesting to watch, but left him feeling sort of wistful; left out, really. It was probably for the best that he would be leaving soon with Reyna and the Athena Parthenos. Between Percy and Annabeth reminding him of that he'd never have love, worrying that Piper would sense his feelings, and enduring worried looks from Jason, the Argo II was unbearable. Not to mention Leo's terrible comedy. As intimidating as Reyna was, Nico would take his chances with her quest.  
"Nico?"  
The son of Hades looked down to the owner of the voice: one lean, tan, green-eyed hero. Reluctantly, he called back, "Yeah? What do you want, Percy?"  
"Um. Can you come down? We have visitors."  
Nico tended. Percy's tone left no room for misinterpretation. These visitors must have been monsters or deities that posed a threat. Glancing around, Nico saw that the other demigods were not in view. That wasn't good. When he got down, Percy shot him a nervous smile. "So, we may or may not be in danger. Prepare for the worst."  
"Who are they?" Nico asked in a low voice.  
"They said they were sex gods," Percy explained uncomfortably, "but they're not targeting virgins, so you're probably safe."  
"I- What?!" Nico spluttered, but his protests went unheeded as they walked in on what was clearly some sort of weird hostage situation. Coach Hedge was propped up against the wall, unconscious. Hazel, Frank, Leo, and Reyna were sitting next to him, tied up but unharmed and fully clothed. The same couldn't be said for Annabeth, Piper, and Jason. They were standing, tied to each other, in their underwear. Annabeth, Reyna, and Piper had duct tape over their mouths. Most of the demigods had cuts and bruises indicating a lost fight.  
The "visitors" were obviously hostile and truly dangerous if they had managed to take down eight powerful demigods; there were two men in togas with good looks so perfect that it grated against Nico's nerves. Even if they hadn't been threatening the crew, Nico wouldn't have trusted them. They gestured for Percy to join the standing demigods.  
Percy shot Nico an apologetic grimace and obeyed, shucking his clothes and settling next to Annabeth to have his hands tied like the others. Nico clenched his jaw and looked away. He didn't need to see Percy in his underwear.  
"Son of Hades," one captor addressed him, bringing him back to the moment with a voice as deep as sin, "how nice of you to join us." He practically reeked masculinity, with a tall, dark, and handsome figure, and defined muscles. He was the stereotypical alpha male. He had a sword at his hip.  
Nico scowled. "I don't know who you are or why you're here, but you'd better be leaving before I send you to Tartarus."  
The other man laughed, with a voice as smooth as butter. Immediately he struck Nico as the less masculine of the two, but no less deadly. He was leaner and more clean-shaven, with blue eyes that danced and a wicked smile. "I like this one. He's fierce." There was no sword on his belt, but Nico knew he had to have some sort of weapon.  
"Mm, he needs to be brought to his knees and made to beg," the alpha male countered, eyeing Nico predatorily.  
The son of Hades placed a hand on the hilt of his sword. "What do you want from us?" Nico was pleased to say that his voice didn't waver.  
"We want you," the less masculine captor said. He came up to Nico and made to take his hand, but Nico drew his sword, pointing it at his throat. The man smiled as if the threat was an inside joke, and bowed deeply instead. "We are Akatharsia."  
Nico stared at him, then glanced at the other. "Both of you? You have the same name?"  
The one in front of him straightened up and nodded happily while his darker companion rolled his eyes, like they got that a lot.  
"Yes," he-the nicer one- purred. "Our mother was less than proud of our incestuous relationship, so she disowned us. We have only the name Zeus gave us. He was quite busy that day, you know, didn't have the time to think of a second name."  
The grumpier man glowered at the sky, no doubt less forgiving of Zeus' laziness than his brother/lover was.  
"Enough with the introductions, brother," the darker Akatharsia commanded dryly. "Put him with the others for now."  
"Yes, but with which group?"  
"Oh, please," Akatharisia Dark said, clearly fed up. "You know perfectly well he's not a virgin."  
Nico clearly saw each of the other demigods' eyebrows shoot up, all eyes on him. He tried to keep a poker face.  
Akatharsia Light turned back to Nico and shrugged. "You heard him." A wicked glint returned to his eyes. "So strip."  
Nico looked at him, at his brother, and at his semi-nude friends before drawling, "Uh, no."  
All the warmth in Akatharsia Light's eyes faded in a millisecond, leaving just the wicked grin. "Oh well, I did ask you nicely. Brother?"  
Akatharsia Light turned on his heel, leaving Akatharsia Dark to saunter forward, taking his time, projecting a distinct aura of power and strength. He made Nico's nerves scream to submit, to give up and kneel for the man.  
He gripped his sword and shifted into a fighting stance, glaring the man down.  
"We are the gods of impurity," Akatharsia Dark growled, "and you, son of Hades, are as impure as they come. I own you." He came close, too close, and Nico took a step back, and then another, until his back hit a wall and the god crowded into his personal space, pressing a hand against Nico’s sternum. "You will submit," the god of impurity demanded, voice low and laced with persuasion, darker and more practiced than Piper's charm speak. His body trapped Nico against the wall. The god grinned, baring his teeth, and Nico had the strongest urge to bare his neck for him to bite, to mark his claim.  
Instead, he kneed the god in the balls.  
Akatharsia Dark grunted and doubled over, freeing Nico to push him away go on the offensive, feinting towards his neck before slashing at the arm he raised when the god tried to defend himself with his own sword. The cut to his wrist was shallow, but Akatharsia Dark hissed in surprise and dropped his weapon. Nico pressed his sword to the man's neck and froze, clearly the winner.  
"You will leave our ship at once, and you will never come back," he growled, trying to give off a very strong death aura.  
He didn't understand Akatharsia Dark's triumphant smirk until he felt the cold press of a blade against his own throat.  
Akatharsia Light tutted behind him. "So strong," he cooed fondly. "You will be fun to break."  
Nico scowled. How could he have underestimated the other brother? Stupid, he berated himself. Never turn your back on your enemy. Even if there are two of them.  
"So, as I was saying before," Akatharsia Light continued as his brother got up, magically healing his small injury and wrenching Nico's sword from his hand, "strip."  
Nico ground his teeth, wanting to refuse but thinking better of it. He could get his throat slit. Instead, he asked, "Why?" because he was honestly curious as to where this was all going. They hadn't hurt anybody yet, so maybe they just wanted to humiliate everybody. He didn't know.  
Akatharsia Light just pressed the blade-a dagger, he thought- deeper into Nico's skin. "I said _strip_ ," he commanded, and released Nico, pushing him over to stand next to Percy. And gods, Nico did not need the fresh wave of blush from seeing the son of Poseidon in his underwear.  
The two Akatharsias stood in front of Nico, watching him expectantly, and boy was that mortifying. He fidgeted and tried to glare them down, but the matching leers on their faces caused him to stare at the ground. He swallowed, and braced himself for whatever fresh hell this was, and took off his clothes until he was as naked as the others, pale, ugly, and vulnerable in just his black boxers.  
"There," Akatharsia Light purred, "was that so hard?"  
The son of Hades glowered at him. "Fuck you," he spat.  
Akatharsia Light pulled Nico's wrists behind his back, binding them tightly. His darker brother approached his front, tilting Nico's chin up to look him in the eyes. The son of Hades did his best to glare, though Akatharsia Dark's dominant aura was overwhelming. Nico considered kicking him in the balls again, but then the god behind him pressed his dagger against the small of his back. Very subtle.  
Akatharsia Dark came closer than the son of Hades was comfortable with. His other hand trailed down Nico's side, leaving a trail of goosebumps. A shiver ran down his spine.  
"We have been watching you for a while, son of Hades," Akatharsia Dark murmured, eyes boring into Nico's. "You are quite...alluring. Secretly, you just want someone to want you. Someone to claim you as theirs. Yet you are strong enough to resist temptation."  
Nico scowled. "Oh, _please_ ," he deadpanned, rolling his eyes. "I just want to live my short, painful life and die miserably like every other son of Hades."  
Percy snorted a laugh, and Leo giggled. Nico kept a straight face, managing to look bored.  
Akatharsia Dark's eyes grew excited, and his feral grin was back. He glanced over Nico's shoulder, shooting an amused glance to his brother. If Nico understood it, the look was a silent "Watch this."  
Then he kissed Nico. Nico’s eyes bugged out.  
It was forceful and rough and warm, and Nico's brain exploded in panic and shock and curiosity, because he'd never really thought he'd ever be kissed.  
Like, ever.  
And it was weird, because then a tongue was tracing his teeth and the god bit Nico's bottom lip lightly. Akatharsia Light grabbed Nico's hips with both hands. The dagger was gone. Before Nico could process that, the god behind him bit into the juncture of his neck and shoulder, hard.  
He involuntarily gasped, leaving Akatharsia Dark room to kiss with tongue, trying to force it down Nico's throat.  
The son of Hades was pinned between two strong, handsome sex gods. The Light god was trailing hickeys up the side of his neck while the Dark god tried to suck his soul out of his mouth. And, oh gods, both of them were pressing their hard-ons against him. It was ridiculously hot.  
And then they pulled back, smirking arrogantly.  
Nico raised his eyebrows, glancing at the other demigods' shocked faces. In the driest, most level tone he could muster, he asked the gods, "What the fuck was that supposed to prove?"  
“That you can’t resist us,” the god in front said firmly. “You are attracted to us. You are thrilled to receive any attention at all, good or bad.” He snaked a hand down Nico’s bare chest and grabbed his genitalia. The son of Hades hissed, trying to flinch away.  
“I’m sorry,” he growled sarcastically, “I don’t get turned on by sexual assault!”  
“Actually,” the god behind him chimed in, “apparently you do.” Akatharsia Light laughed. “Oh, please,” he drawled. “You’re not hard? Big deal. Mutilation will do that.” His arms curled around Nico’s abdomen and the demigod could feel the vibrations of his voice when he said, “We are gods of sex. You don’t think we can tell that you’re aroused by this? By a simple touch? A kiss and some hickeys? Sure, you don’t want to like it,” he admitted, “but you do.”  
Nico scowled and licked his lip where the god had bitten it. "Are you sure? Because all things considered, that was a shitty first kiss, dude. I'm kind of disappointed."  
Akatharsia Dark loomed over Nico. His devious smirk hadn’t wavered, and the son of Hades knew his own emotions were an open book to the god. That didn’t mean he would admit to anything, and he held the dark god’s gaze, not backing down.  
"Wait," Percy interrupted, drawing everyone's attention. "Wait, I thought they said you weren’t a virgin!" He was looking at Nico.  
The son of Hades raised his eyebrows. "What?"  
Percy frowned, angrily confused and still in his underwear. "You just said that was your first kiss. How can that be if you're not a virgin?"  
The son of Poseidon struggled against his bonds. " _Who the fuck had sex with you without kissing you?"_  
The son of Hades glowered at him. “Really, Percy? That’s what you’re disturbed by right now?” He rolled his eyes. “A lot happened in Tartarus," he said bitterly.  
Akatharsia Light backed off, releasing his hold on Nico. "Whoa, hold on, you went to Tartarus? And survived?!"  
Nico turned to the god, confused. "You didn't fucking know that? Then how the fuck did you know I wasn't a virgin?"  
"So you got raped again," Akatharsia Dark interrupted, momentarily silencing the chaos. "How interesting."  
" _What?!_ " Hazel shrieked.  
" _Again?_ What do you mean, ' _again?_ '" Nico twisted away from the gods, though his hands were still tied.  
A malicious smile slowly spread across Akatharsia Dark's chiseled face. "Then you don't know," he realized with manic excitement. "Oh my," Akatharsia Light breathed behind him. "Shall we refresh his memory, brother?"  
Akatharsia Dark kept grinning. "Yes, let's," he decided. "Son of Hades, you forget our power. We are gods. I can disintegrate you in a millisecond. I can force you to do anything I wish. I can have you brought to your knees, begging for release."  
"Do your worst," Nico snarled.  
The god chuckled. "Oh, I will," he promised lecherously. "But first..." He turned to the other naked demigods. "A demonstration."  
He walked up to Jason, smirked, and touched his forehead. The son of Jupiter's eyes fluttered shut, and his eyebrows scrunched up in concentration. A blush spread across his face, and he swayed. When his eyes opened, they were hazy with arousal.  
"What did you do to me?" he ground out roughly, a tent in his boxers.  
Akatharsia Light giggled. "You just experienced your first time again. We do love corruption."  
The god's dark brother went on to Piper and said, "And now you, my dear." He touched her forehead and she inhaled sharply through her nose, squirming and blushing much like her boyfriend.  
Annabeth endured the experience in silence, but when it came to Percy, he let out an undignified sound between a whine and a moan. Nico refuses to look at him. He really didn’t need to see the bulge in his underwear. The four demigods recovered with audible breathing, and Akatharsia Dark came back to Nico.  
"Don't you fucking dare," the son of Hades warned, not even looking at him.  
The god laughed. "As if I'm going to pass up this opportunity," he said dryly.  
Honestly, Nico was disappointed in Annabeth. She would usually have an ingenious escape plan by now. Unfortunately, the daughter of Athena was a bit busy recovering from whatever sexual vision she'd seen.  
So Nico hissed, "I will personally see you condemned to the darkest part of Tartarus itself even if I have to be dragged down with you. You can’t break me.”  
Akatharsia Dark approached as slowly as possible, giving Nico a sultry look. His brother wrapped his strong arms around Nico's waist, resting his head in his shoulder from behind and purring, "Oh, sweetie, he's going to _rock your world."_  
Nico just braced himself for whatever was coming, morbidly curious. It wouldn't be good, he knew that. But if they weren't talking about Tartarus, then what?  
The touch came in the form of a caress, and then memories were crashing into him faster than he should be able to understand, except he could. It was like unlocking a huge piece of him; he knew it all, he'd just forgotten, and now it all came back with a fury. The god's influence pulled a few distinct memories to the surface of his mind. Nico felt it all happen again, taking over his senses. He felt the unbearable hunger, excruciating pain, and overwhelming shame once more, felt the coldness sinking deep into his psyche the way only a traumatic experience could.  
He was vaguely aware of his screams echoing. He called out in Italian and fragmented German, begging someone, anyone to help him, mama, Bianca, anyone, and begging the men to stop. One of them stomped on his face with a dirty boot, and his nose broke with a burst of blood. Nico whimpered and stopped screaming, just pleading weakly for mercy.  
This was not a part of his past he'd ever come to terms with. It was a terrible, cruel, ugly thing. It was just the sort of impurity that Akatharsia wanted.  
So they lingered on Nico's past, drawing out memory after memory in painstaking detail. Nico relived his childhood, losing everything. His family, his freedom, his strength and dignity.  
When it was done, Nico was curled in on himself on the floor, huddled against a wall, shivering even though it was a sunny day in the middle of summer. His nose was bleeding.  
Akatharsia Light was kneeling in front of him, smiling and murmuring soft praise, telling him he did so well. The god touched Nico's face, wiping a tear away, and the son of Hades flinched violently. Akatharsia Light just shushed him gently and kept running his hands over Nico’s body. His gut churned, but he couldn't move away, couldn't do anything about it.  
Akatharsia Dark stood nearby watching with crossed arms, smirking arrogantly.  
"The mighty son of Hades, brought so low," he murmured proudly. "Look at you, so weak. Pathetic. Now you realize how filthy you are. You've been used and discarded so many times, what‘s one more?”  
Nico squeezed his eyes shut, just trying to process everything, feeling his sanity stretching. Every touch, every word, every demented manipulation came back to slither beneath his skin and it all accumulated to bubble out of his throat as a hollow laugh. Inky darkness seeped from him. Opaque, black tears seeped from his eyes. Tendrils of shadow curled around the ship, and the temperature dropped to freezing. Akatharsia Light nervously backed away. Nico forced himself up on his knees, then planted one foot on the deck. The rope around his wrists rotted and snapped, and he rose shakily to his feet. He took one step towards the bewildered gods. “ _You_...” Another step. “... _can’t_...” Another. “... _break me_ ,” he vowed. Weaponless, barefoot, naked, he charged the two gods. He sidestepped Akatharsia Light’s first stab, grabbed the wrist and punched the vulnerable area at the side of the ribcage. The god howled, and Nico stole his dagger, sheathing it in his gut without hesitation. The god screamed. Golden ichor spilled out when Nico withdrew it with a sick squelch and spun around to block the attack of the second god. He went on the offense, using the shadows to pull at Akatharsia Dark’s feet, slowing him down. Blow after blow, he kept the god on the defensive, backing him up into the ship’s railing. Finally, Nico executed a move that had the god’s sword flying away, into the ocean. He stopped, blade inches from the other’s face, breathing hard. “You will leave,” he demanded in a growl. “You will leave and never come back.”  
The dark god said nothing. It was clear that after taking down the other eight demigods, he hadn’t expected both of them to be bested by a scrawny son of Hades. Akatharsia Dark swallowed, and glanced somewhere behind Nico. Immediately, the son of Hades’ spine chilled with fear. Never turn your back on your enemy.  
Nico spun around, holding the god in front of him like a shield and pressing the dagger to his neck. Despite the position, Akatharsia Dark spoke in a voice like steel. "Here's the deal, di Angelo: you submit to us, and we don't kill your sister."  
And just like that Akatharsia Light had Nico’s Stygian Iron sword pressed to Hazel's throat without his kind face changing in the slightest, even with the gaping wound in his stomach.  
His sister looked to him with surprise and worry in her eyes.  
Nico's blood ran cold. Clamping down on his panic, he tightened his grip on Akatharsia Dark, pressing the blade hard enough against his neck to draw a thin line of ichor. “If you hurt her, I hurt him,” he reasoned with Akatharsia Light.  
Akatharsia Light’s smile was sickeningly sweet. “Oh, dear, I think you’ll find that gods are quite a bit more, ah, durable than mortals like you,” he said, caressing Hazel’s face. She tried to jerk away, but the sword held her in place. He continued, “Besides, he’s my brother. You don’t think I want to see him bleed a little? He’ll recover. We always do.” He grinned wider. “I’m calling your bluff, son of Hades.”  
Akatharsia Dark started shaking in Nico’s grasp. It took him a moment to realize the god was laughing. “Give up, Nico,” he rasped. “You’ll never win. You can not save both yourself and your beloved sister. So what’s more important? Your misplaced pride? Your already impure body? Or your sweet, innocent sister here?”  
The world went still and, looking into Hazel’s eyes, Nico had a moment of startling clarity, as if he was opening his eyes while submerged in the Cocytus. He wasn't just the son of Hades, he was Hazel's big brother. She was pure. He wasn't. He was expendable. She wasn't.  
"Don't hurt her," he gritted out.  
"Then beg us to take you like the slut you are," Akatharsia Dark told him as if it would be just that simple and easy.  
“Let her go,” he demanded, not yet giving in.  
“We will,” Akatharsia Light assured him, “if you surrender. I swear it on the Styx.” The god smiled with terrifically faked kindness. “I didn’t want it to come to this. We have no interest in a pure girl like her. I would like to see her live to be corrupted. Everyone should be corrupted. But if you don’t give in to us, I will cut her throat.” The menacing glare was back.  
Akatharsia Dark reached up slowly, guiding the dagger away from his neck. Nico could do nothing to stop him. His hands shook as the god pulled away and turned around to face him. Nico’s wrist was gripped softly, then harder until the blade fell to the deck with a clatter. “Nico,” he purred, “we’ve wanted you since first your body was taken and your soul began to blacken. Your sister will live. All you have to do is submit.”  
Nico swallowed. He hesitated. Anything for Hazel. Anything for Hazel. Better me than her. Anything.  
"Let her go," he gritted out. "Please. I'll do what you want. But you have to swear on the Styx not to hurt them.” Because honestly, fuck everything. He was the son of Hades. He'd never been normal. He lived through more pain and misery than anyone could comprehend. He'd survive another assault. And if he didn't...oh well.  
"Done!" Akatharsia Light said eagerly. He looked to his brother. "Right?"  
His darker brother's eyes were hungry and calculating, inches from Nico’s own, considering the terms. "Hmm, and in return you swear to be our good little sub?"  
Nico glared weakly at him. "No. You're both gods. I'm sure you'll find a way to get what you want from me. And this is only going to be a one time thing. I'm not immortal. I have a quest to do." The dark god's eyes bored into Nico, demanding his obedience, and the demigod was tempted to change his mind, offer his complete submission, but this compulsion was the exact reason he didn't. He wasn't sure he'd be able to resist the gods for too long, or if he was even going to bother to try.  
"Oh, we'll only keep you for a month or two," Akatharsia Light assured him. "Mortals don't take very long to break, and then after that they get boring quite fast."  
"No," Nico countered, "an hour, tops."  
"A week." The lean man bargained.  
"Two hours."  
"A day."  
"One night."  
"Deal!" Akatharsia Light looked to his brother for permission. The more muscular god thought about it.  
“Any other terms?” Akatharsia Dark sneered.  
Nico shivered. “No mutilating, crippling, killing, or permanently injuring me.”  
Akatharsia Light seemed to pout at that, but Nico glared back at them until Akatharsia Dark nodded once. "Very well, son of Hades. I agree to your terms."  
"Swear it on the Styx. Both of you."  
They did. Both gods swore to Nico's exact conditions with utter confidence. Hazel was released to fall back to the deck next to Frank, and Akatharsia Light dropped the Stygian Iron sword. A shiver of fear struck Nico. Had he missed something? Well, he supposed the gods were still getting what they wanted: him.  
Fuck.  
"And now..." Akatharsia Light murmured lowly, approaching Nico.  
The other god finished the thought with a growl. "Now we take what we want." He waved his hand towards the other demigods and instantly they simultaneously squirmed. He flashed Nico a smirk. "Just a little something to keep them entertained for the next hour or so," he explained.  
Nico looked at the others. Jason, Piper, and Annabeth had their eyes closed, but Percy's were wide open, staring worriedly at Nico while also trying to withstand whatever he was feeling. "N-no," the son of Poseidon managed to say. "Nico, don't!"  
And Hazel was now frantically struggling to get out of her bonds. Leo and Frank followed her lead, but it would be a while before they freed themselves and the others. Nico locked eyes with Hazel one more time, and he told her, "Don't worry. I'll be back before you know it."  
A year made its way down her face and Nico's heart broke. He shot her a shaky smile, trying to be reassuring. Then, dead serious, he turned to Percy. “Protect her,” he croaked out fear slipping into his voice, “please.”  
Each god took one of his arms, gripping him possessively. "Time to go play," Akatharsia Dark growled. The three of them disappeared.

  
Nico reappeared on the Argo II in the earliest hours of the morning in just his boxers again, crying silently and utterly wrecked. Cool streams of mist spiraled off the ocean, chilling him to his bones.  
He found his clothes where he'd left them, except that they'd been folded into a neat little pile. His sword was laid down on top of it. He imagined Hazel might have done that.  
Nico picked them up and went to go throw up and then take a shower.

Percy found him a few hours later, just sitting up on the mast. He looked up at the son of Hades. Nico looked down at him tiredly. Percy shot him a questioning look that translated into, Can I come up?  
Nico shrugged and gave a small nod.  
A minute later the older boy settled onto the mast next to him.  
"Hey," he said quietly.  
"Hey, Nico replied quietly.  
Percy paused, uncertain, but forged on. "Are you okay?"  
Nico hesitated. Then he shook his head. "Not really."  
"Did they hurt you?"  
Nico shrugged. "Not badly," he muttered, picking at a hole in his jeans.  
"Did you just get back?" Percy asked.  
Another shake of the head. "I got back a while ago. Took a shower."  
"Did you see Hazel yet?"  
"No."  
Percy frowned. "You should go tell her you're alive, at least. She's been worried sick."  
Nico considered it. How could he even face her? He swallowed. "I don't know if I can."  
"Why is that?" Percy played the therapist. "You know she won't see you any differently."  
"How can't she?" Nico breathed. "I just gave my body to two perverted strangers. I'm either a victim or just as perverted. And I really don't know which."  
Percy sighed. "Since when have demigods pitied each other? We're all victims. You more than most, but still. We just want to know what happened to you. We'll let you decide how much detail to give, and then help you acknowledge it and move on."  
Nico mumbled, "That sounds suspiciously like an intervention."  
"We just want to help you. I want you to stop blaming yourself, stop beating yourself up for it. I want you to know that you're not impure, or whatever those gods told you. You're just a normal guy who's extremely brave and selfless, and has really shitty luck."  
As smart as Annabeth was, Nico realized that Percy was better at emotional stuff. He just naturally connected with people; he knew how to inspire, charm, comfort, or annoy. Maybe that's why Nico liked him, and maybe that was why Nico's throat decided to close up at his speech.  
He took a minute to calm himself, trying not to cry. If Percy noticed, he didn't say, just stared out at the sea with eyes the same color.  
Finally Nico said, "That's not what everyone else says.”  
“What do you mean?”  
Nico hugged his legs. “I've been told I deserve it so many times that I'm starting to believe it. Especially now."  
Percy frowned. "Why especially now?"  
Nico shrugged. "Survivor's guilt."  
"Hades never should have let you think that you should have died instead of Bianca," Percy said with an angry mutter. "It's not true. It was her choice. She died a hero."  
"It's not just Bianca," Nico confessed. "There were others. So many good people died around me. Why was I the one to live?"  
"Are you talking about the Titan War?" The son of Poseidon's gaze grew distant and vaguely sad. He seemed to be thinking of lost friends.  
Nico shook his head, looking down. "You know how I didn't remember my childhood?" Percy nodded. "Well, there was a good reason for that, apparently." The son of Poseidon waited for him to explain. After a while, Nico spit it out. “I got my memory back.” He flashed Percy a look of raw anguish before settling his eyes on the ocean once more. "It was fucked up," he muttered.  
The son of Poseidon grimaced. "You really thrashed around yesterday. You kept screaming in different languages, pleading for help." Percy shook his head. "It was a shock for all of us to see you like that."  
Nico's gaze hardened. He bit his cheek and nodded. "I know. I should have kept quiet."  
Percy choked. "Dude," he said, horror evident in his voice, "that's not the point! The point is you should have never had to go through something like that, and we should have never had to stand by helplessly and watch you suffer so much!"  
"Better me than anyone else," the son of Hades recited. Then his gaze grew more distant. quietly, he said, "I hate being helpless. I hate being tied up or confined. I've been claustrophobic ever since the Jar. And I really hate prisons. I hate being forced to do things. I can fight anybody to the death without any fear, but when they bring Hazel into it, there's nothing I can do." He took a breath and went back to picking at the hole in his jeans. The two demigods were quiet for a while. There was just the roaring ocean, sparkling in the rising sun. Nico was suddenly very grateful for the son of Poseidon's soothing presence by his side. He wasn't judging, wasn't talking, but just shared Nico's sadness, listened to as much of his story as he was willing to give. It was nice. Nico sighed quietly. Percy turned to him, sensing there was more to be said.  
"I bothered Hades for years," Nico started, "for him to give me my memories back. He only ever gave me a few mildly happy ones. I knew he was holding back, but..." He smiled and shook his head, looking down. "...this was why."  
The son of Poseidon raised his eyebrows in vague disbelief, but didn’t push. “I assume you’re not going to tell me what actually happened.”  
Nico shrugged. After a while, he answered quietly, "I'm trying not to think about it too much." Then he leaned his head back and closed his eyes, managing to look incredibly old and yet still so heartbreakingly young. "I'm just so tired," Nico murmured.  
Percy studied the son of Hades: the way he slouched, the bags under his eyes, how he tended to curl in on himself, the way he shivered ever so slightly beneath his tattered aviator jacket. "Dude," he said gently, "when's the last time you slept?"  
Nico took a deep breath, not opening his eyes. "Can't remember," he admitted. "If the nightmares were bad before, I don't even want to know what they'll be now."  
Percy shook his head in sympathy. He couldn't imagine what sort of demons haunted the other boy. At a certain point, you had to wonder what his sanity was like. Why hadn't he snapped yet? Or had he? Percy wasn't a psychologist. He did know that Nico needed sleep, and someone to protect him from his worst dreams. So he said, "Come on," and jostled the son of Hades. The younger boy opened his eyes and peered at him weakly. "You can sleep in my room."  
Nico sighed. “Percy, really, that’s okay. I don’t need-“  
“Yes, you do,” the son of Poseidon interrupted kindly. He smiled. “Come on, Nico. We’re going to climb down this mast, you’re going to go pop into Hazel’s room, hug her, tell her you’re alive, evade her questions, and then you’re going to get nice and warm and sleep. I’ll wake you up for lunch.”  
Nico regarded him warily. Percy stared him down. Finally, the son of Hades nodded. “Okay.”  
“Okay?” Percy beamed. “Great!” Relief shone through his sea-green eyes, and he sighed. “Great. Come on.”

  
Lunch was awkward as hell. Nico would know; meals in the Underworld with Hades, Persephone, and Demeter were the worst. But this lunch topped them all. Nobody spoke except Leo, and his attempts at humor were as brittle as they’d ever been. Everyone kept sneaking glances at Nico. He could feel their eyes on him as he picked at his food, no matter how much he tried to sink down in his seat at the corner of the table, between Percy and Hazel. He had one elbow on the table, pressing that hand against his neck to hide a particularly vibrant hickey. Annabeth and Reyna were across from him, and Nico determinedly avoided their gazes. Hazel was stuck to his side and mother henning. “You have to eat something,” she pushed.  
Keeping his voice gentle, he replied, “I’m really not hungry.” He was, actually, but he didn’t think he could keep anything down. Another silence stretched as Hazel decided not to further push him. Nico took a bite to try to appease her, but it tasted dusty, scratching his dry throat going down. He went back to pushing the food around, waiting for the others to finish and leave. Except...they didn’t leave. Percy finished first, but he didn’t move from the table. It was only when both Leo and Reyna followed suit, all glancing toward Piper that Nico started to suspect. One by one, the other demigods finished eating and stayed seated. Finally, Nico pushed his plate away and got up.  
Piper cleared her throat. “Uh, actually, Nico,” she started, “I was hoping you’d stay and talk to me.”  
Nico froze, silently cursing the Fates for siccing a bunch of demigod therapist-wannabes on him.  
“I really don’t want to talk about it,” he told her calmly, making for the door.  
He came up short as Reyna blocked him from leaving. Glancing toward the second and last door of the dining room, he saw Jason mirroring her position, effectively trapping him. The rest of the demigods still sat at the table, looking toward him expectantly. Nico grimaced. “Et tu, Reyna?” he grumbled.  
She folded her arms, unmoving, though a certain warmth stayed in her eyes. “Oh, no. Don’t you go breaking out the Latin on me. Sit.”  
Slowly, clenching and unclenching his fists, Nico turned back around and sat. He stared at Piper. “I assume you’ll be conducting this session?“  
She spread her hands on the table. “As the resident ‘feelings’ person, I guess I am.”  
“Well,” Nico countered, trying to ignore his anxiety, “as the resident ‘trauma’ person, I think I’m actually more qualified to just handle this on my own.”  
“We need to make sure you’re okay,” Piper countered. “We’re all worried about you.”  
Nico narrowed his eyes. “I’m about to go on a quest that may very well kill me. Does it really matter if I’m okay or not now?”  
Piper frowned. “You’ll have a better chance of surviving if you actually want to live.”  
“Look,” he countered, “as long as I have Hazel, I’ll want to live. Not Tartarus, not trauma, not anything can change that.”  
Hazel laid her hand over his, giving him a teary look.  
“This isn’t just about scraping by alive. This is about your mental state,” the daughter of Aphrodite said in a soothing voice.  
Nico scowled. “I’m not crazy.”  
“No, I know,” she assured him quickly. “Please, Nico. We just want to help.” There was a heavy sweetness layered onto her words that had Nico nodding immediately. They wanted to help. Why not tell them everything? But then the thought of violation made him cringe and he snapped out of it with a shiver.  
“Don’t.”  
Piper blinked. “Don’t what?”  
“Don’t charmspeak me,” he said lowly. “I’ve been manipulated enough for a lifetime.”  
Piper looked hurt and angry for a second, and then she dropped her eyes to the table. “You’re right,” she admitted. “I’m sorry. I’m no better than any of them.”  
Nico snorted. “You’re way better than them.”  
She smiled faintly and shrugged. “I just want to help.”  
He studied her, and knew that she was sincere. He glanced at the others, who seemed to exude helplessness and curiosity, but he detected no malicious intent.  
Nico squirmed. “Whose idea was this?” he asked more calmly.  
All eyes turned to Hazel. Nico faced her, internally sighing. She grimaced guiltily, pleading with her eyes. “You never tell me anything,” she admitted quietly. “I’m sorry, but you’ve saved me so many times, I just want to know how to help you.”  
“You could have told me that without calling for an intervention,” Nico suggested.  
She raised her eyebrows skeptically. “You never would have given in.”  
Frank came to her aid. “The rest of us want to know too,” he pointed out. “You’re only fourteen. You should be able to rely on us. You can trust us.”  
Nico clenched his fist so hard that his knuckles cracked. Then he released the tension and sighed. “I’m going to regret this,” he muttered, but explained, “When that god touched each of us yesterday, we experienced our first times again. Mine was a rape I didn’t even remember.” He scanned the faces around him for surprise but found only sadness. They had already guessed this much. “Before yesterday, I had virtually no childhood memories. He unlocked them all.” He shook his head in disgust. “And believe me, they’re not pretty.” He took a deep breath and began. “I grew up during the Great Depression,” he started.  
“Geezer,” Leo muttered.  
“Whippersnapper,” Nico shot back. Then he blinked, getting back on track. “Times were tight. We were always hungry. I started working in a factory when I was four or five." He paused. More quietly, he said, "In 1939 my mom, Bianca and I were taken to concentration camps. Thankfully, we were all deemed able to work. We were separated into adjacent camps by gender. I was seven."  
Everyone’s eyes widened. "Oh my gods," Piper muttered. "That's- I'm so sorry."  
Nico nodded. “In the male concentration camp, there was this man I knew. He was our neighbor growing up, and he used to babysit Bianca and me when my mom was working. He was the closest thing we had to a father." Nico shook his head, lost in memory. The others didn't push, just let him go at his own pace. "In the camp, he looked after me, made sure I ate. He was older than most of the men, but he managed to work so he could survive. He got really sick, though, and one day a guard started beating him because he wasn't fast enough. They went overboard and broke his ribs and his leg." Nico swallowed. "The Nazis didn't have any use for crippled people, or people too young or too old to work. They were going to shoot him. They had the gun raised, and I just lost it. I ran up and kicked the guard in the shin." Nico groaned, rubbing his eyes. "He grabbed me and called the other guards over. They told me if I did everything they said, they wouldn't shoot my neighbor." He let that hang in the air, dirty and unpleasant. Then, "I did what they wanted. I did every humiliating, dehumanizing, sexual thing they wanted, while my mother watched from the women's camp. All to save my neighbor. But after, instead of shooting him they just-" Nico choked, shaking his head disbelievingly. "They put him in the furnace. Burned him alive, screaming, right in front of me. And then they continued violating me, no matter how much I struggled. I called out to my mother," he murmured, "but she just turned away."  
Nobody spoke. Nico sadly stared into space. Then, Annabeth asked gently, “How did you and Bianca survive?”  
Nico swallowed. “Eventually, each of us grew too weak to work. I stopped eating the rotten scraps they gave us. The Nazis decided I was finally too useless to keep alive. They tossed me into the furnace.” He looked down. “The death sentence was a relief, really. A selfish pleasure. My mama watched from behind the fence again, but I didn’t look at her. I should have felt guilty, leaving them behind to suffer like that, but it’s not like I had a choice anyway. In the furnace, I felt darkness cover me, and then nothing. Absolutely nothing. No pain, no hunger, just blissful nothing. Hades saved me at the brink of death.” Nico sighed. “He did the same for Bianca a little bit later, when she got too sick. And then, months later, my mama followed. He kept us in the Underworld, in some sort of Limbo for a while, to let us heal mentally. Then we were brought to America for a fresh start. But Zeus killed my mama in an attempt to kill us all. Hades saved Bianca and me, dipped us in the Lethe, and put us in the Lotus Hotel, where time stands still.” He waved his hand vaguely. “I think you all know the rest.”  
“What did the two gods do to you yesterday?” Percy asked with tightly controlled anger in his voice.  
Nico flinched, but spoke emotionlessly. "They restored my memory and used it against me. I had to relive it all, over and over, after they shot me full of aphrodisiacs and hallucinogens. They only stopped with the flashbacks when I gave in and begged for more."  
“More what?” Hazel asked, teary eyed.  
“More of them. Whatever they wanted to do to me. They were trying to show me that they were better than the flashbacks, that I should be grateful, or appreciative that they were being more gentle. They were trying to train me,” Nico shook his head in disgust. “And they succeeded. I gave up, did what they wanted, and then it wasn’t so bad. Humiliating, but...” he trailed off with a sad shrug. “They were certainly the most attractive rapists I’ve met.”  
Piper blushed a bit. Hazel’s face was tomato red. The other guys all seemed even more uncomfortable than before, except Percy, who was staring at Nico as of trying to analyze him. Annabeth was unshakable, but Reyna seemed to approve. There was a glint of admiration in her gaze, or maybe respect.  
“You still didn’t consent,” Piper argued. “It was forced! That’s not right.”  
“I’m not saying it was right, or healthy, or sane,” he scowled. “I’m saying it could have been worse. It didn’t break me.”  
Piper seemed equally exasperated and relieved. She shook her head. “I don’t think anything can break you.”  
Nico frowned in disgust. “I was broken a long time ago. How much damage can you do to a pile of crushed glass?” he asked wryly.  
“No, see, Nico, you’re like the ocean. You can’t be broken,” Percy corrected him.  
“No,” Nico said slowly, rolling his eyes, “you’re the ocean. I’m the Underworld.”  
“Maybe you’re the ground,” Percy mused. “You can change its shape on a small scale, but it’s too large to really make a difference. It outlasts everything.”  
Nico squinted at him. “Are you calling me old and fat?” he accused. Leo laughed, bless his stupid sense of humor. Nico went on to say, “The earth is broken too. Tectonic plates drift around crashing into each other and causing mass destruction on fault lines.”  
Percy shook his head. “Okay, so I need to work on my metaphors,” he relented. Admiration shone in his eyes. “What I’m trying to say is that you’re the strongest person I’ve ever met, Nico, and we’re all lucky to know you.”  
The son of Hades froze. His mind raced in a frenzied train of _Don’t blush don’t blush don’t blush... oh my gods what do I even say to that? Thank you? But I’m really not?_ That was high praise coming from the hero of Olympus and Nico’s longtime crush and kind of role model. Luckily, Leo interrupted his thought process before Nico could choose an embarrassing thing to say.  
“So...” Leo frowned. “...what now?”  
“Now nothing,” Nico answered, glad he still appeared and sounded calm. “We all go back to normal, fight monsters, save the world, etc. We forget yesterday ever happened.”  
Percy spoke up again. “You know if you ever do want to talk about it, any one of us will listen, okay?”  
Nico sighed, but nodded tiredly. “I know. Thanks.”  
“Great,” Reyna turned to him. “You want to go discuss strategy for our quest?”  
The son of Hades accepted immediately, aware and grateful that Reyna was giving him an escape. Anything to stop talking about his demons. He was the son of Hades, for the gods’ sakes! He could handle demons. Or so he thought.  
A few hours later, he was right back where he started: alone on the mast, huddled against the chill of the ocean breeze, watching the sun die down. There was something soothing about watching sunrises and sunsets. It reminded him that change was constant and inevitable, and that at least there was still beauty in the world that could not be corrupted by him. So he had been violated. It was done and over with. He had moved past the first time. He could do it again. He was just a son of Hades. It wasn’t like anyone expected him to be pure. And most people wouldn’t even know. He hadn’t changed in any drastic way. He’d been wary of touch before. No one would notice a difference, especially because nobody really knew him that well to begin with. And besides, the world might be ending in a week or two. Why worry?  
Nico smiled to himself and watched the last of the sun’s rays give way to shadow. He was fine now. And Hazel was safe and as pure as always. He’d done a good thing by taking the bullet for her. He could relax as long as she was safe.  
Nico leaned his head back against the mast, just staring up at the emerging stars. He grinned to them, searching the constellations, and imagined Bianca among them, chasing comets. He laughed a little to himself, blinking tears away. A few escaped, but he choked down a sob. “Don’t worry, _sorella_ ,” he whispered. “I will protect her.” And he would, until he died. He imagined Bianca’s response, and muttered fondly, “Yeah, yeah, I’ll protect myself too. Stop worrying so much.”  
He fell asleep a while later, smiling up at the night sky, and his last impression was of the cool wind tracing through his hair like fingers. He would be okay.

_“Fear nothing, my children, for we are dignified. Pain makes us strong. Remember that. We will never truly leave one another, not soon, not ever. No matter what happens we will see each other again in the afterlife. Remember what I taught you. Be strong.”_

**Author's Note:**

> I’m so sorry.


End file.
